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Alcatel-Lucent OmniSwitch Ethernet Switches vs Cisco Ethernet Switches vs Juniper EX Series Ethernet Switches comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Mindshare comparison

As of October 2025, in the Ethernet Switches category, the mindshare of Alcatel-Lucent OmniSwitch Ethernet Switches is 0.8%, up from 0.6% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Cisco Ethernet Switches is 11.9%, down from 18.5% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Juniper EX Series Ethernet Switches is 2.9%, down from 3.5% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Ethernet Switches Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Cisco Ethernet Switches11.9%
Juniper EX Series Ethernet Switches2.9%
Alcatel-Lucent OmniSwitch Ethernet Switches0.8%
Other84.4%
Ethernet Switches
 

Featured Reviews

OusaidAbaz - PeerSpot reviewer
Doesn't have many proprietary protocols but some models have stability issues
We had stability issues with Alcatel-Lucent OmniSwitch Ethernet Switches 6250. One issue is with licensing. When migrating from TDM to VoIP/ToIP solutions integrated on the same architecture, Alcatel-Lucent OmniSwitch Ethernet Switches don't have the same skill level or follow the same development path as companies like Cisco. They started integrating these solutions later, which is why there's a noticeable difference in advancement. Their main focus has been IP PBX solutions like OXO and OXE. They developed their IP environment and switches later, but not as deeply as other vendors. For example, they use Aruba access points and controllers for wireless solutions rather than developing their own portfolio. A specific challenge I've faced is with access points. Due to country code restrictions, the model sold in one region (like Europe) may not work properly in another. This affects channels and features related to the electronic environment specific to each country. To resolve this issue, I've had to reconfigure access points with the correct country code. The solution uses basic protocols. It doesn't have proprietary features like Cisco's EIGRP or advanced BGP features; it's based on standard protocols.
Myint Aung - PeerSpot reviewer
Exceptional network support and AI integration drive performance while suggesting enhancements for future use cases
I work with both HyperFlex and other Cisco products. I prefer to make online support available because I can utilize my CCIE architect, solution consultant, and engineer team along with our account manager and product sales team. We can clarify requirements and decide how to support you. We should arrange a conference call about Cisco Ethernet Switches where I can invite my architect and consultant to clarify more about the features that are most beneficial for improving network efficiency. Today is AI day, and all the new firmware includes AI to optimize the performance, traffic, and security of Cisco Ethernet Switches. It's performing very well. With many solutions and vendors available, you have to decide on one. I am extremely satisfied with the licensing cost for Cisco Ethernet Switches. For the price of Cisco Ethernet Switches, I would rate it a 7. My overall rating for Cisco Ethernet Switches is 10 out of 10.
Patrick Anaku - PeerSpot reviewer
Has provided reliable performance with useful features such as virtual chassis and high port density
The important thing for our use case of Juniper EX Series Ethernet Switches has been reliability, and there are features such as the Virtual Chassis feature, which is one of the things we use. In our case, we use them as core switches in a network that is not very large, and their reliability and the Virtual Chassis feature work well for us. It was one of the reasons we chose it, along with the port density; we are using the 32 port and the 48 port, which work for our needs. Regarding its security features such as MACsec encryption, they are standard and cover what we want; we do not do a lot as they are just Layer 2 switches, but it has standard security features.

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"Enables direct access to clusters."
"The solution has a very good web interface. It makes it easy to manage everything."
"We are able to customize this solution based on the customer's requirements."
"The solution doesn't have many proprietary protocols like Cisco's. It mainly uses standard protocols like VRRP (similar to Cisco's HSRP), Spanning Tree, and Rapid Spanning Tree, which can sometimes cause integration issues."
"The fibre ports that are 10 Gb capacity helped with the travel of a lot of regular as well as video data. Fibre can handle a lot more virtual data than copper twisted-pair, so we got a lot more data and a lot more traffic signals back through the fibre ports, faster, than with copper."
"The product is stable. It does have only one power supply. They don't have a redundant power supply."
"This is a dependable switch which will help you sleep at night."
"The most valuable feature for me is the stability of the switches."
"I think the VMA architecture is valuable."
"We use Cisco Ethernet Switches to configure VLANs in the VPN network."
"The most valuable aspect of the solution is the ability to manage the switches and the ability to have a certain level of familiarity with setting up and configuring the switches."
"We only use the basic features and we find that it works well."
"The most valuable features of Cisco Ethernet Switches for our network are speed, latency, and reliability."
"The solution's valuable features are the speed of network transfer, it can transfer four to six gigabits per second."
"The most valuable feature of Cisco Ethernet Switches is their stability. They are rock solid, and that's the advantage of Cisco."
"Multicast is a great feature of this product."
"I like the simplicity of it."
"One of the most valuable features of Juniper Ethernet Switches is they are rugged."
"The combination of hardware and software makes it a very good solution. It is a modern protocol that they have supported in the switches. The solution has good performance."
"This is a lower cost product with better features than the competition."
"Juniper switches are smart and we have all the features that we want. You can rollback to the previous version if you make any mistake during configuration. This is not possible in Cisco."
"We have found the product to be scalable."
"The scalability is excellent. It's one of the aspects of the solution that is quite good."
"This solution is impeccable."
 

Cons

"My customer's team is not able to understand the loophole with Alcatel-Lucent OmniSwitch Ethernet Switches, but apart from that, there are no issues."
"The commands for the switches could be easier as I find them more complex compared to those of Cisco."
"The network connection should be improved."
"We had stability issues with Alcatel-Lucent OmniSwitch Ethernet Switches 6250. One issue is with licensing. When migrating from TDM to VoIP/ToIP solutions integrated on the same architecture, Alcatel-Lucent OmniSwitch Ethernet Switches don't have the same skill level or follow the same development path as companies like Cisco. They started integrating these solutions later, which is why there's a noticeable difference in advancement."
"I could see them possibly creating a more intuitive software. It's very user-friendly, but there are some things that aren't very intuitive when programming the switches."
"technical support response time is sometimes very slow."
"The commands for the switches could be easier as I find them more complex compared to those of Cisco."
"There needs to be better integration with the interface."
"Cisco should consider adding a GUI as most vendors now offer the ability to manage switches via a graphical user interface, while Cisco switches are managed using pure CLI."
"Integration with third-party products could be improved."
"I haven't heard from my engineers that they said it's excellent."
"There are instances where the commands you are familiar with might change or be replaced with newer syntax."
"The user interface could be improved."
"One area for improvement could be integrating a single dashboard for both wired and wireless networks."
"The licensing needs to be improved."
"There's are other products that are better for network programmability. Cisco isn't as programmable as some preferred vendors. For example, on iOS 6 products, you have to commit the change directly on the running configuration. If you have a generic product you can do this, so it can improve in programmability."
"EX switches take too long to boot when we restart them for maintenance. We need to minimize downtime. Another issue is the command line interface. Juniper's commands are different from other switches, so it's hard to remember them."
"The management tools are limited in their abilities, and suffer from upgrade problems."
"One potential drawback of the Juniper EX Series has been that those without experience using a command-line interface (CLI) may find it intimidating. However, Junos is working on improving this by offering tools, such as Juniper Mist with Wired Assurance and Apstra. Additionally, the graphical user interface (GUI) could be improved as it has been considered lackluster across the board in Junos."
"Juniper needs to get their code up to par because it isn't stable enough for a leaf and spine design."
"It would be nice to have a more available list of modules that you can get for this solution."
"They could provide better security tools."
"Juniper Ethernet Switches could improve in the EX 2300 model because it does not support IPsec VPN. Only the models at 3400 or higher support it. Additionally, there is a need for support for Mac which is lacking. Some of their competitors, such as Cisco, support Mac."
"Steep learning curve for newcomers."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It is an expensive solution."
"The licensing for OmniSwitch Ethernet Switches is a one-time purchase with no additional costs."
"The pricing is reasonable compared to Aruba and HPE."
"Pricing is cheap compared to other vendors. When we benchmark the tool against Meraki, Cisco, and others, it is usually more affordable."
"Users have to pay an annual licensing fee for Cisco Ethernet Switches, which is expensive."
"The price of this solution is fair."
"The solution can be comparatively cheaper."
"The cost of this solution is expensive."
"It is an expensive product since it is used in a large network where you cannot rely on some cheaply priced solution."
"The solution’s pricing is reasonable."
"The cost of the solution is by unit."
"The cost of Cisco Ethernet Switches is expensive."
"The pricing of Juniper Ethernet Switches compared to equivalent switches from Aruba, Cisco, and others, Juniper Ethernet Switches are priced a little higher. They are approximately 20 to 50 percent higher. When we receive a new range of models, the prices can come down. The price can also vary by region."
"Juniper Ethernet Switches are a less expensive solution than Cisco Ethernet Switches. There is only a one-time purchase for Juniper Ethernet Switches."
"There is a subscription payment model or you can purchase licenses on a one, two, and five-year basis. If you want decent support, the solution is not expensive."
"The pricing for the support is very high."
"The price of the Juniper EX Series is reasonable. Cisco is a lot more expensive."
"They offer a more competitive pricing structure compared to one of the competitors."
"The solution's pricing is cheaper than that of Cisco."
"We only pay for support."
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Comparison Review

it_user82779 - PeerSpot reviewer
Jan 29, 2014
Benefits of Juniper vs Cisco
Both are decent products. I prefer Juniper for the following reasons: 1) Cleaner separation of data plane from control plane. Higher end Cisco devices are better at this but most of the lower end products still seem to be more integrated than I like. 2) The Hierarchical config design means I can…
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
University
9%
Retailer
8%
Comms Service Provider
6%
Wholesaler/Distributor
5%
Computer Software Company
12%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Government
7%
Computer Software Company
11%
Manufacturing Company
10%
University
9%
Retailer
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business5
Midsize Enterprise4
Large Enterprise3
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business58
Midsize Enterprise36
Large Enterprise53
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business39
Midsize Enterprise17
Large Enterprise24
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Alcatel-Lucent OmniSwitch Ethernet Switches?
The new web graphical interface is much better than before. We now have easy access to the command lines. They're all...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Alcatel-Lucent OmniSwitch Ethernet Switches?
In terms of pricing, Alcatel is cheaper than Cisco, however, MikroTik is the cheapest. I cannot comment on the pricin...
What needs improvement with Alcatel-Lucent OmniSwitch Ethernet Switches?
The commands for the switches could be easier as I find them more complex compared to those of Cisco.
Would you recommend replacing a Cisco Catalyst Switch by a D-link one?
Hello Mesfin It depends on the real scenario, the cisco 2960 is a very good device and they usually have routing func...
Which would you choose - Fortinet Fortiswitch secure access or Cisco Ethernet Switches?
We researched Cisco but ultimately chose Fortinet FortiSwitch Secure Access, mostly because of the price. Fortinet F...
In terms of ethernet switches, would you go with Cisco or Juniper?
Our organization ran comparison tests to determine whether Cisco or Juniper Ethernet switches were the better fit for...
What advice do you have for others considering Juniper Ethernet Switches?
Juniper EX model is ok for the campus network as the ex4300 is EOL in a few years and the new ex4400 is the standard....
What is your primary use case for Juniper EX Series Ethernet Switches?
The important thing for our use case of Juniper EX Series Ethernet Switches has been reliability, and there are featu...
 

Also Known As

Alcatel-Lucent Ethernet Switches, OmniSwitch Ethernet Switches
Cisco Industrial Ethernet Switches
Juniper Ethernet Switches
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Bayonette, California State University (CSU), Centre Hospitalier Carcassonne, Centro Universitšrio de Brasilia (UniCEUB), China Tianchen Engineering Corporation Co. LTD, Citta Della Speranza, City of Frankfurt, City of Ogden, City of Vila Franca de Xira
Linz AG
BlackLotus, Staminus, Community Bank, BAS Group, Cloud Dynamics, Privalia, Fluidata, and Tesla Motors.
Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Netgear and others in Ethernet Switches. Updated: September 2025.
871,358 professionals have used our research since 2012.